tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-90909252012-01-28T20:29:57.330-06:00I'm a Public Defender: I'll Get You Off for Free!mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.comBlogger801100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-39456586064761704012012-01-26T17:29:00.001-06:002012-01-26T17:29:52.735-06:00

I'm getting good at this...

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-58255187180945234172012-01-26T06:25:00.001-06:002012-01-26T06:39:05.657-06:00

Although I'm still not done with my current trial, I've found out that I'm the #1 case for next week's trial calendar, on another case! Back to back jury trials? Please kill me... I'm going to be a zombie by the end of next week.

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-944229600720485572012-01-24T19:14:00.001-06:002012-01-24T19:21:19.607-06:00

So our judges sometimes give the jury a survey after trials are over, to assess the attorneys and stuff. I hate these things. In the two juries I've had fill them out, a jury member commented on my appearance as the thing they liked the least about me. I was incredibly offended. One said I should have dressed more professionally, despite the fact that I wore a business suit every day.  Wtf? What

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-5180937541921729962012-01-23T12:39:00.001-06:002012-01-23T12:41:00.301-06:00

Day one of my first trial of 2012 starts this afternoon.  Game face on! In case you were wondering, my current trial pump-up song  is "I Need a Hero" by Bonnie Tyler. Look it up!

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-22925484212534265642012-01-21T17:48:00.001-06:002012-01-21T17:48:37.825-06:00

I start another trial on Monday. Oddly enough, the client in this trial is the same client as my last trial. He had two cases pending and he just happened to have his cases actually make it to the top of the trial calendar one right after the other. So, we are going to trial on the other file starting on Monday. I'm going to be exceptionally far behind on things after this trial. I still haven't

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-17668510270563174632012-01-16T21:43:00.001-06:002012-01-16T21:43:46.913-06:00

This is Ward.  He's very fancy, clearly.  That's why he sits like a person on the couch and folds his arms.  He is my fat and fancy cat.  The last time we took him to the vet (YKW was with me, since we were also taking the other cat in, as well, and it's difficult to try to wrangle both the cats into their carriers all on your own.  Plus, YKW was paying for the vet bills, so he had to come

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-11460411861404720152012-01-14T22:04:00.000-06:002012-01-14T22:04:06.542-06:00

I survived the first week back, but just barely...  I was swamped when I got back and I spent several extra hours at work trying to play catch up.  Which is not exactly the most exciting way to come back from vacation, but whatever... Next week is another massacre, especially at the beginning of the week.  Monday is MLK, Jr. day, so it's a holiday and I don't have to work/am not allowed to work

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-40087338781437713092012-01-13T23:04:00.001-06:002012-01-13T23:04:23.820-06:00

This is what was waiting for me when I got back from vacation. Ew.

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-90440967754356948042012-01-09T22:57:00.001-06:002012-01-09T22:57:27.400-06:00

I almost forgot about this delightful conversation I overheard today while I was at Target:  Mom: "Are you sure you're still going to want to use these notebooks and folders once he's not cool anymore?" Youngish teenage girl: "Mo-om, he's Justin Bieber.  He's like THEE guy.  He's never not going to be cool." Yeah...that's what I thought in 1997 about Hanson...but, like the saying goes, "In an

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-19576733418042089782012-01-09T22:29:00.001-06:002012-01-09T22:29:38.862-06:00

Well, starting tomorrow, my Christmas vacation is officially over.  Boooooo.  It was so relaxing to sit around and do nothing and watch marathons on TV.  Seriously, the holidays are the best time for TV marathons because the programmers must get lazy and just think, "Whatever, let's just play 36 hours straight of Law and Order: SVU.  No one's watching anyway..."  Except for me--I'm watching!  And

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-49198387138668614022012-01-06T19:01:00.001-06:002012-01-06T19:17:12.619-06:00

1. Prancing around the courtroom whenever the attorney wants. 2. Defense attorney present while the suspect rambles on and on and on. 3. Defense attorney asks for a three day continuance in the middle of trial and the judge just agrees to the continuance without batting an eye. 4. Just objecting without giving any reason for the objection. 5. The prosecutor using ridiculous and inflammatory

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-37818304082390594012012-01-05T13:51:00.001-06:002012-01-05T13:51:43.402-06:00

I only have to feed myself now, which is slightly depresso to grocery shop for one person, especially since I'm a non-perishable food-hoarder, thanks to growing up really, really poor and sometimes not having food in the house.  AND I have difficulty turning down a sale, since it's on sale!!  But, I only buy things on sale that I'd actually use, so I'm not like hoarding things unnecessarily.  I

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-61018920539326756512012-01-04T00:18:00.000-06:002012-01-04T00:18:14.993-06:00

Ok, so it's been a bit since I've been able to post anything, thanks to the fact that YKW came and took the computer out of the house.  That means I'm generally limited to posting from my phone, which gets a little tiring after awhile because the screen is so tiny.  But, occasionally, I can get in front of a real screen and a real computer, such as now.  So, I can finally blog on a normal sized

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-31493993570644577782011-12-31T17:33:00.001-06:002011-12-31T17:33:30.643-06:00

Here's hoping that 2012 is better than 2011...

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-60162264798075632592011-12-24T20:37:00.001-06:002011-12-24T20:37:42.419-06:00

I got loneliness for Christmas. Phenoms.

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-70447538975843168132011-12-24T01:00:00.001-06:002011-12-24T01:22:46.973-06:00

What's the point of life if it only consists of surviving? What's the point of trying when nothing comes of it?  It's time to go back to the girl I was before I met him. Closed-off, cynical, pessimistic, bitter, tough, slow to reveal my real self to people, and never, never, never letting anyone get too close. I let him get too close and I got burned.  Never again.

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-56821440743704793382011-12-22T19:52:00.001-06:002011-12-22T20:27:03.365-06:00

People tell me things like, "You'll get through this" and "Things will get better" and "You are a strong person and you can handle this."  But none of those things are helpful or true.  I don't believe that things get better. Things get different, but not better.  Life has always been trading one crap situation for another and this is no exception. I also don't buy that being strong means I'll

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-44688087958328179232011-12-19T21:19:00.001-06:002011-12-19T21:19:05.635-06:00

Seriously, those ASPCA commercials with Sarah McLachlan singing over a montage of photos of diseased animals are the worst advertising campaign ever. I can't even watch them. I just change the channel well before any information about how to donate comes on the screen.  Try again, ASPCA. With less diseased animals next time. Thanks.

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-79854278491394807422011-12-16T00:51:00.001-06:002011-12-16T00:51:24.198-06:00

There was a shooting at a northern Minnesota courthouse yesterday afternoon.  The alleged gunman is a defendant who had just been convicted at trial and shot the county attorney three times, as well as shooting three other people.  The defendant's attorney ran to help the county attorney, who had been shot in the leg and in the stomach and was bleeding heavily. This saddens me. I am in a

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-66212052777072316862011-12-06T23:48:00.001-06:002011-12-06T23:48:34.506-06:00

Dropped my phone in the toilet. Fml.

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-58415384706929350752011-12-01T18:01:00.001-06:002011-12-01T18:28:11.530-06:00

Supposedly time heals all wounds, but I don't think that's true.  I think time lets you know how to hide the pain or how to work around the pain, but doesn't actually heal the pain.  If I suddenly had a stabbing, throbbing, shooting, agonizing pain in my legs when I walked, I'd learn how to adjust and walk so as to lessen the pain on a daily basis.  But, the pain would still be there and it

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-74215120900875882972011-11-28T23:18:00.001-06:002011-11-28T23:18:06.726-06:00

I'm being smothered by my cats since getting home this evening. They keep following me around the house and meowing and crawling on me the second I sit down and/or lay down. I take it they missed me a little... Well it's nice to feel loved, even if it includes way more smothering than I'd go for.

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-17255432049609166252011-11-28T20:16:00.001-06:002011-11-28T20:16:23.951-06:00

M Thru F: Well When You Put It That Way, Life Seems So Much Simpler

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-91745689161699653642011-11-25T23:55:00.001-06:002011-11-25T23:55:06.255-06:00

So, apparently my smart phone has an app that lets me blog from my phone! (If any of you tech-savvy readers already knew that, shhhh...I'm slow on these type of things...). And I can even post photos! So, here's a photo of my adorable but very strange cat.

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-49359545665352054372011-11-24T21:53:00.001-06:002011-11-24T22:26:11.902-06:00

Well, I lost my most recent felony trial.  That sucked a lot, especially because I thought we had a really good case.  I was pretty disappointed when we lost and was in a foul mood for the rest of the day and into the next one, as well.  The only good part about the whole thing is that I know for certain that my client felt like he had good representation during his case.  I know this because he

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-20172293252146814562011-11-24T05:49:00.001-06:002011-11-24T05:49:38.401-06:00

People with torsos longer than their legs freak me out.

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-19188865138612297202011-11-23T09:19:00.001-06:002011-11-23T09:19:51.227-06:00

Tomorrow is the first major holiday without You Know Who. To stave off the tears, I'm heading to Chicago to hang with RV and RN. BFFEs to the rescue!

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-34661096667045660302011-11-21T21:48:00.001-06:002011-11-21T21:48:10.875-06:00

I've decided I don't really like living alone...

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-71516883457378860072011-11-15T07:18:00.001-06:002011-11-25T23:55:56.773-06:00

Felony trial number three starts today. Let's see if I remain undefeated.

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-29091185710137833092011-11-11T18:34:00.001-06:002011-11-11T18:38:43.421-06:00

On Wednesday, I was lurking around the courthouse waiting in between hearings, just sort of milling around in the common area.  There was a man there waiting around, too, and he came up to me and said, "Hey, you're a lawyer, right?"  I told him that I was and he said, "I can't remember your name, but I think I've heard of you."  So, I told him my name and he said, "Yeah, yeah, I've heard about

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-65742647590087763152011-11-08T19:02:00.000-06:002011-11-08T19:02:47.997-06:00

Hat moved out last Wednesday.  Mostly because I told him to move out and that I never wanted to see him again.  That was because I was tired of dealing with the constant lying about the relationship between him and his new girlfriend, which I asked him to just wait on until he was officially divorced from me because--hey, guess what? it's super disrespectful to be openly and flagrantly cheating

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-76935089509791531252011-10-29T15:35:00.000-05:002011-10-29T15:35:17.709-05:00

I'm going to be beyond broke when Hat and I finally split.  Like actually-can't-pay-for-my-bills broke, not just I-only-have-a-little-bit-of-money-and-have-to-budget-carefully broke.  I'm panicking a little now, because we have been a two-income household for 5 years, so I have counted on having two incomes for all of our bills.  Suddenly I'm down to one income and I've got a ridiculous amount of

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-56115882841261290882011-10-25T20:11:00.001-05:002011-10-25T20:11:33.548-05:00

Grocery shopping for one person is one of the most depressing times of my life.

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-31683561739037498512011-10-18T21:59:00.002-05:002011-10-18T21:59:33.477-05:00

I'm navigating the worst time in my life at the moment.  Not surprisingly, like most other people in times of great crisis, I have turned to my religion to try to find answers and find some peace/comfort in this inconsolable situation.  After weeks of crying, sobbing by my bed, saying desperate, heartbroken prayers that I'm sure millions of others have also said, I finally felt like I had some

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-13270701626319727772011-10-15T21:58:00.001-05:002011-10-15T21:58:31.286-05:00

Tonight I stopped praying for him to come back to me. Instead, I asked God to help me stop loving him.

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-33170867767344351902011-10-10T20:58:00.000-05:002011-10-10T20:59:07.759-05:00

We're starting couples' counseling on Thursday.  I convinced Hat to go by asking him to at least go with me so that someone, some third party, could help me understand his reasons for leaving.  Shockingly, just hearing that he's "done" and doesn't want to try to fix things because he "doesn't want to" or because he "doesn't have the energy" isn't exactly enough of an answer for me.  So, he agreed

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-25460168532177789272011-09-30T20:23:00.001-05:002011-09-30T20:23:31.109-05:00

Well, it's been a long week and a half, to be sure.  It hasn't been all bad, although a lot of it has been bad.  I'm trying to just focus on what makes me happy (outside of my marriage, obviously) and try to do those things.  I've been trying to keep a positive attitude each day, even though that sometimes feels impossible.  Work helps somewhat, since it can at least distract me for a bit.  But,

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-51355915591856802832011-09-26T07:15:00.001-05:002011-09-30T20:24:46.618-05:00

So this divorce diet is working out great for me. I've lost 11 pounds since Tuesday.

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-18486232944940563492011-09-22T23:29:00.001-05:002011-09-30T20:24:38.669-05:00

I worked from home today because yesterday I couldn't manage to get through one hour without having to go into the bathroom to cry.  I just accepted the fact that I would be crying again today and since I didn't have court today, I worked from home to avoid crying at work.   Due to our current financial situation, neither one of us can just walk out the door right now.  Which means that for the

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-38134651553906437862011-09-21T17:07:00.000-05:002011-09-30T20:24:28.782-05:00

Out of the blue, Hat has decided that he wants a divorce.  I am at a loss as to what to do.  I'm physically sick about it and I haven't eaten since he told me because I don't think I can keep it down. I didn't notice anything was wrong.  We haven't been fighting.  We've been having a good summer together, going on trips and vacations.  I thought we were doing just fine.  But apparently not.  So,

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-78057138754298023472011-09-06T22:07:00.001-05:002011-09-06T22:17:30.430-05:00

The court system can quite often feel like a never-ending treadmill.  There's so many people going through it and it never stops.  The interesting thing is that although there are so many people from so many different walks of life, there seems to be some typical characters who make up the public defender clients.  These people are not the majority of clients, by any means.  But, the typical

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-40853316128780753892011-08-23T21:27:00.004-05:002011-08-23T21:27:30.668-05:00

One of my non-lawyer friends said something very funny the other day, which I needed to share: This weekend, I was telling my friend how I had just recently gotten assigned to an attempted first degree murder case.  I said that I'd already done a first degree murder case in February and now I had an attempted murder case in the same year.  My friend's response was, "So, is that like hitting for

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-20929241729702590302011-08-23T20:46:00.000-05:002011-08-23T20:46:04.061-05:00

So, within the last year or so, the court in one of the counties where I work has put together a panel of volunteer attorneys that are willing to help out by covering low-level misdemeanor cases.  This is to help alleviate some of the less serious cases that are usually assigned to the public defenders.  The volunteer attorneys step in and take on some of these misdemeanors, meaning that the

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-39227036113939319212011-08-14T11:05:00.002-05:002011-08-14T11:05:28.844-05:00

This video is hilarious.  I laughed until I cried.  It's got an excessive amount of swearing, but if you've ever owned a cat, it very aptly describes what cats are like.  Seriously, hilarious.

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-46495647301520046772011-08-08T21:33:00.000-05:002011-08-08T21:33:01.584-05:00

Well, as far as Mondays go, this one was pretty good.  And for those of you who aren't from Minnesota, when a Minnesotan says something is "pretty good," that means it's excellent.  If something is actually pretty good, then we will say it was "not bad."   Today started off with a jury trial that I knew was not going to go to trial.  One, because someone else was going to trial and two, because

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-17913413967284486162011-07-31T20:48:00.000-05:002011-07-31T20:48:15.908-05:00

It's no secret that I'm rather hedonistic.  I'm fully aware of that.  However, if was only when Hat pointed out to me recently that I'm the only person he knows who hates sweating that I realized just how intensely I despise things that aren't pleasurable.  There are many things that I really hate and that I am incredibly annoyed with that apparently other people don't think about.  Like sweating

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-1389314958093062062011-07-17T02:59:00.000-05:002011-07-18T22:30:49.426-05:00

So lately I've been feeling very blah.  I'm not sure why.  It's not low thyroid meds, since I'm on a new dose and have been for awhile and I'm feeling better overall now.  So it's not that.  I'm not sure what the problem is.  I've been feeling just kind of bored with everything, I guess.  There's not anything in particular that is wrong.  It's just sort of routine and boring.  I feel like it's

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-3348241890465838452011-07-15T22:19:00.001-05:002011-07-15T22:19:17.899-05:00

Matt Capps is the worst closer in baseball.

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-7377815486490161032011-07-14T21:02:00.000-05:002011-07-14T21:04:38.790-05:00

And I'm exhausted... I worked out today for the first time in forever.  Ever since the car accident, I've been really out of shape so I decided now was the time to get back into shape.  But, I forgot how freaking hard that is!!  I did a lot of squats and lunges and now I can barely move.  I'm like a little old lady, hobbling around.  It's pathetic how out of shape I am... In other news: it

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-27371109901058008772011-07-01T11:46:00.001-05:002011-07-01T11:46:42.534-05:00

I just won a contested omnibus and got a felony case dismissed! I'm on fire lately!!

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-71095480160962123522011-06-29T22:39:00.000-05:002011-06-29T22:39:38.560-05:00

Hat's decided to be a copycat and have his own blog, so I promised him I'd direct you all to it.  It's a cooking blog, because hey, that's what Hat does!  And, conveniently, it's made for newbies to cooking and/or people who thinking cooking is too hard.  So, you should all go check it out, especially if you're hungry.  It's here at http://hatcooks.blogspot.com/  It's even got pictures, to make

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-72883478829655979012011-06-18T00:02:00.000-05:002011-06-18T00:02:16.000-05:00

Upheaval is like the trend this June, apparently.  There's a bunch of things currently in the middle of upheaving (is that a word?? It is now...) and it's messing with my brain.  Thing 1: Impending state government shutdown (Read more about it here) In a very short nutshell, the state government has till July 1 to pass a budget for the next fiscal year.  As an aside, I never thought I'd use the

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-17148806761155706012011-06-13T08:33:00.001-05:002011-06-13T08:33:47.853-05:00

Nothing like a migraine when you wake up to get you REALLY motivated for a day of court appearances. Ugh...

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-3160173322635368752011-06-09T22:02:00.000-05:002011-06-09T22:02:53.371-05:00

I have been trying to sew a pair of pants for about 1 1/2 months now.  Ever since Hat got me that sweet sewing box for my birthday, I've been working on a pair of pants for work.  The first pair didn't work out because I messed up the pattern and they were too small.  This was a major setback since the pants were almost completed and I was really upset over that mistake.  But, I re-started the

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-28596438835803498252011-06-05T21:09:00.000-05:002011-06-05T21:09:36.065-05:00

OMG..."Sister Wives!" I seriously can't stop watching this insanity.  Because these women are crazy!!!!!!! It's terrible and I really should stop watching.  Except I can't...

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-45487760470122515422011-06-02T21:19:00.000-05:002011-06-02T21:19:51.295-05:00

Winner, winner, chicken dinner!  My second felony jury trial ended today around 4:15 p.m.  Jury came back around 7:30-7:45--not guilty on both felony counts.  Wooooohooooo!!!! The minute before the judge reads the verdict is the most stressful, nerve-wracking, and terrifying minute ever.  The second after he says "not guilty" is the most amazing, fantastic, and satisfying second ever.  And the

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-5875556355880289142011-05-31T11:12:00.001-05:002011-05-31T11:12:46.165-05:00

Felony trial #2 begins today. Game face on!

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-31641679704631886122011-05-25T20:07:00.000-05:002011-05-25T20:07:25.044-05:00

I lost a sentencing motion today.  I worked super hard on it, as did a member of my support staff.  I even put together a powerpoint presentation to correspond w/ my verbal argument to the court  (and it took me roughly 6-8 hours to put the presentation together because I really don't know how to do powerpoint and kind of had to teach myself as a I went along).  But, in the end, the court did not

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-44419066741037546982011-05-22T23:50:00.000-05:002011-05-22T23:50:26.299-05:00

Sweet mother, I just saw an episode of "Sister Wives."  I'd never seen any episodes before tonight.  What the hell?!  I'd claw those other women's eyes out, no questions asked.  And then I'd kick my husband's ass for even suggesting he be allowed to bang other chicks, let alone force me to consider them my "sister wife."   My favorite part of the episode was when the group had to move because

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-28216900179062820972011-05-20T19:19:00.002-05:002011-05-20T19:22:09.563-05:00

So, Hawaii was amazing.  Stepping off the plane felt a little like stepping into a movie, since everywhere I looked, there were palm trees and gorgeous mountainscapes.  And the ocean.  Lots of the ocean.  Like this: Those are actual photos I took while we were there.  I know, right??  Un-freaking-real... Needless to say, it was super relaxing.  My regular stabbing-upper-back/shoulder pain

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-12235383191815358132011-05-16T23:16:00.001-05:002011-05-16T23:16:22.078-05:00

So, May 21, 2011 is supposed to be Judgment Day, followed by misery for anyone who isn't Raptured. At least I got to go to Hawaii before all that happens.

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-68032384286484398852011-05-09T12:30:00.000-05:002011-05-09T12:30:16.697-05:00

Minnesota: May 12: Showers; high of 62; low of 50May 13: Few showers; high of 56; low of 49May 14: Few showers; high of 60; low of 44May 15: Partly cloudy; high of 64; low of 46May 16: Partly cloudy; high of 66; low of 47May 17: Showers; high of 67; low of 46May 18: Scattered showers; high of 66; low of 44 Hawaii: May 12: Partly cloudy; high of 84; low of 73May 13: Partly cloudy; high of 83; low

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-40273176118513124532011-05-08T23:03:00.002-05:002011-05-20T19:21:54.861-05:00

Thursday is Hawaii-day!! I'm almost on the amazing, glorious Hawaiian beach!! Just gotta make it through Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Then vacation!!!!

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-52124457099324217262011-05-04T16:46:00.000-05:002011-05-04T16:46:38.904-05:00

One of the prosecutors and I were discussing bail on a case before court this afternoon.  I wanted him to agree to lower the bail.  While we were talking about why I thought he should agree to reduced bail, he was reviewing the bail evaluation, which is this form that ranks defendants based on a number of factors to determine whether bail should be set and at what level.  The scale goes something

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-35338058255885758562011-04-29T19:16:00.000-05:002011-04-29T19:16:21.815-05:00

I have kind of wanted to punch everyone lately.  This is because my thyroid medication is definitely off.  As a result, my mood starts to suffer and I get seriously edgy.  Like I have been lately.  So, I end up having zero patience and then everyone gets on my nerves immediately.   This is a problem at work, since dealing w/ my clients requires patience.  So far I've been okay at keeping it in

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-10208283883983813892011-04-27T15:07:00.001-05:002011-04-27T15:07:43.833-05:00

I get to see Cider on Sunday!!!!!

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-60303788480683214552011-04-24T09:25:00.001-05:002011-04-24T09:25:36.250-05:00

Yesterday was my birthday. I'm the big 2-8 now.  It was a pretty awesome birthday.  I played video games for most of the morning, then watched the Twins game.  They won, which was exciting.  Then I went to JoAnn Fabrics because I wanted to try to sew some more since Hat got me this sweet sewing box as my birthday present:  Since it's now a whole lot easier to move my sewing stuff around, I feel

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-25990303787702149202011-04-19T17:09:00.001-05:002011-04-19T17:09:09.957-05:00

Cider was discharged from the hospital today!!!! Best! News! Ever!

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-19016923749752989512011-04-18T18:58:00.001-05:002011-05-20T19:21:00.925-05:00

My thyroid medicine is off again.  I know this because lately I keep having these depressing/crappy thoughts pop into my head that generally don't come to mind when my levels are normal.  Things like, "Good gracious, I have to go to work for 40 hours a week for the rest of my life?! Who made that rule? Effing a, this sucks balls."  and "Damnit, being a grown-up blows a lot more than I ever

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-83605273155113789102011-04-15T23:56:00.001-05:002011-04-15T23:56:44.150-05:00

It was 70 on Tuesday. Today it snowed enough to collect on the ground. I hate you, Minnesota.

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-80645821848974394692011-04-12T08:05:00.000-05:002011-04-12T08:05:23.407-05:00

Hat and I recently went to Dave and Buster's to take my mom out for her birthday.  She very rarely gets to do anything fun, so we thought it would be a good time for her.  It was--she had a lot of fun.  We also had a lot of fun.  And, in exciting news, we managed to win enough prize tickets to score this sweet 4-person picnic set:  Really what sold me was the mini salt and pepper shakers.  

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-9920502167729992992011-04-07T08:22:00.001-05:002011-04-07T08:22:57.404-05:00

Its finally started to warm up in MN. It's amazing how much happier I feel just from being in the warmth and the sunshine. 1000 times more happiness daily.

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-87288922314675333042011-04-04T20:34:00.001-05:002011-04-04T20:34:37.621-05:00

Does anyone who isn't a Yankee fan not just despise the Yankees? They are so hideous.

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-33274753793556805782011-04-03T19:08:00.000-05:002011-04-03T19:08:35.142-05:00

So, upon starting to re-watch My So-Called Life, I have realized that two things from this show have affected me forever.  The first is my desire to be a redhead.  The color that Angela Chase dyes her hair in the first episode is the color I have constantly tried to replicate in my own life.  The second is my never-ending crush on Jared Leto--or more accurately, on Jordan Catalano.   No matter

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-57026689752475756912011-04-03T13:59:00.000-05:002011-04-03T13:59:56.312-05:00

Baseball makes me happy.  I'm so glad it's back on so I can watch it again, even though the Twins lost miserably on their first two games.  Other than that, I currently have nothing else to report.  Everything has been fairly mellow lately.  Which is a nice change of pace, for sure.  There's a chance I'll be in yet another trial tomorrow, since we're #2 on the list and I don't know what's going

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-88826022087423915542011-03-30T18:13:00.001-05:002011-03-30T18:13:27.903-05:00

Only one day left till baaaaaaaaaasebaaaaaaaaall!!!!!!

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-85218428588862319822011-03-29T21:37:00.000-05:002011-03-29T21:37:39.811-05:00

So, last Thursday, for some reason, all of South East and South Central MN was in love with reading my blog.  And they were all state workers, according to my stat tracker, because they all accessed it from the domain of state.mn.us.  This was oddly enough on the same day that this bill was introduced in the MN Senate, which would permit counties to withdraw from public defender representation

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-53633100809548196512011-01-13T20:00:00.003-06:002011-06-17T23:29:22.977-05:00

There are many, obvious reasons why it's got to be easier to be a prosecutor than a public defender.  There's the fact that people assume that the prosecutor is always right.  There's the fact that you get to decide your own caseload (to a certain extent).  There's the fact that if you decide on the day of trial you have a crappy case, you can just dismiss it (I'd love to be able to do that!). 

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-79945369079839915142010-11-11T10:54:00.006-06:002011-05-25T20:27:04.544-05:00

I was really excited yesterday because I was finally going to be getting new glasses.  Mine broke about a year and a half ago and I have been living in contacts ever since then, which has resulted in a lot of burning, angry eyes from having contacts in for too long.  So, yesterday, I went to get my new, stylish, sweet glasses and I was pumped to be able to have some non-contact time at home. (

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090925.post-66458630031239834932009-11-22T21:43:00.001-06:002012-01-04T13:52:56.696-06:00

I love chocolate lava cake. LOVE IT. There's nothing that I could love more as far as desserts go. So delicious... But I always thought that it would be so complicated to make. Boy, was I wrong! Here's the recipe for them and who knew it was only 5 ingredients?! Chocolate Lava Cake:  4 oz bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped 4 oz (one stick) of butter 3 eggs 1/4 c. flour 3/4 c. sugar cocoa

mellancollyeyeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14178960087735521340noreply@blogger.com0